The Terminator, 1984

Given what a lavish, expensive production its sequel was, it can be surprising to go back to the original Terminator and remember that this was a pretty low-budget affair, a somewhat grungy film that nonetheless thrillingly captured director James Cameron’s capacity for visual flair. In fact, I love that grungy quality, and for my money the club scene in this original film remains the most cinematically exciting sequence in the franchise. The moment when Arnold walks by Sarah’s table in slow motion just as she’s out of sight, the glimpse of Reese (who Sarah still thinks may be the killer stalking her) in the mirror, it’s all so purely visual and effective, cinema at its most stripped down and elemental. And man, what an effective use of Arnold. Robert Patrick’s T-1000 in the sequel is incredible, don’t get me wrong, but nothing beats the way Arnold’s physique, accompanied by that ruthless, calculating gaze, fills the frame, the way he moves not like a man but like a thing compelled. Terrifying and unforgettable. – Carolyn Petit